The Tour de France typically ends on the Champs Elysee, but Paris was kinda busy for the Olympics so they moved it to Nice. The Grand Arrivee was scheduled to land in the city at the exact time of our summer holiday, so the usual routine of summer at Le Negresco had to change.
The plans were to stay in nearby Beaulieu-sur-Mer and pop in for the final day, but after are a long weekend in Eze (before we headed down the hill) , we could see the build up for the Tour. From what it sounded like the whole region would grind to a halt for the Sunday final so we had to decide if we were going to brave the crowds or watch it on the telly. A rare rainy day made the choice for us but I still wanted to see the city in it’s Tour splendour.
A 15 minute train ride on the Monday morning gave me the chance to see the city as it started to pack up from the tour. The girls headed off to the market and I went in search of pictures.
The sun came out and the colours popped, and for a moment I felt a pang of regret. but the city looked great and this is what I saw.
The packed main railway station was hosting both the Tour de France crowd and the Olympic build up. Out the front were these cool bike sculptures that just look so French.
Down by Le Negresco was a massive stand for spectators, which must have been a great spot to see the riders whizz past.
Walking down the Promenade Des Anglais I could see more subtle changes that were celebrating the Tour de France. As the temperature rocketed past 30c it was great to have these coloured shades to celebrate the tour.
Some of the iconic blue chairs on the promenade were swapped out to reflect the jerseys – yellow, green and polka dot red.
Heading into the old town, the pedstrian bridge was being dismantled but some of the signs remained.
On the lamposts were these replica jerseys. I am not sure if they lit up at night which would have been cool!
As we got closer to the Place Messina, there were more signs showcasing the history of the Tour de France and the city of Nice.
And now to the iconic Place Messina. The water park area was closed off to make space for an athletes area. Whilst the water wasn’t flowing the sun was still bouncing off the bright yellow signs.
The iconic black and white tiles of Place Messina showed a great contrast to the bright yellow stands for the Tour de France.
I have a strong love for the city of Nice and I was delighted to see it in technicolour yellow.
